Idina Menzel and Taye Diggs were in the original cast of “RENT” in 1996. They later married in 2003 and divorced in 2014. The Broadway stars share a son named Walker.
Menzel, 55, later married actor Aaron Lohr. She also worked on major projects like “Frozen” during the divorce and explained why that made her feel bad for her ex-husband.
Idina Menzel Felt Bad That Taye Diggs Couldn’t Escape ‘Let It Go’
Menzel spoke on a panel for New York Comic Con on Oct. 8. She talked about working in huge projects while navigating life after divorce, according to PEOPLE.
“We were separating and it was really hard,” Menzel explained. The “Wicked” star said the timing of the breakup aligned with the release of “Frozen,” and its story fits to what was happening in her real life.
“The poor guy,” the singer said. “It was ‘Let It Go.’ He’s in a mall and he’s like, ‘[Expletive] this! It’s everywhere, ‘Let It Go, Let It Go.’ Like, ‘I can’t let it go!’”
She also originated the role of Elizabeth in “If/Then” and said, “The story of the show was so much about a woman who’s making different choices in her life and finding her identity.” The Tony winner believes that work “saved” her during that rough time.
Taye Diggs Said ‘Let It Go’ Was His Mantra
Diggs, at the time, said his son was proud of Menzel’s new successful hit. The whole world was going through the “Frozen” craze, and he had bragging rights. The “All American” star said he embraced the song and called it his “mantra” while handling the split.
“He was at some playdate with a bunch of kids and the song came on,” the actor told PEOPLE. “The kids said, ‘Oh, my mother is always singing this song,’ and he said, ‘No, my mother really sings this song!”
Of course, the popular song had worn some listeners down. In 2024, Diggs said their son is a fan of Disney movies but stayed away from his mother’s Oscar-winning song.
“We saw them all — well, not ‘Frozen.’ He got sick of [it] pretty quickly [as] you can imagine,” he told Us Weekly. He has another parent who is in the Disney family. The “Chicago” actor currently voices King Triton in “Disney Jr.’s Ariel.”
The 2013 song became the first to break into the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100 since “Colors of the Wind” from “Pocahontas.” Menzel is also the first Tony winner to climb to that spot.
“Frozen III” is expected to be released on Nov. 24, 2027. The teaser shows Elsa (Menzel) discovering a threatening ice formation. She follows a butterfly to a portal to another snowy place.
Anna (Kristen Bell) and Kristoff (Jonathan Groff) finally get their wedding day. A woman ominously tells the sisters that she’s been waiting to meet them. Time will tell if the new movie will have a similar hit to the original.
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Why Idina Menzel Felt Bad for Taye Diggs After Their Split, ‘Poor Guy’